After the release of reports highlighting the shortage of teachers in Iran’s schools, with numerous classrooms across various cities left without educators, the Ministry of Education has responded to these concerns by issuing an official notice. In a brief statement, the Information and Public Relations Center of the Ministry of Education conveyed the following:
‘To provide a prompt and clear response to the public, it was announced last week during a television program featuring the Minister of Education that, in cases where there is a shortage of teachers in schools, individuals are encouraged to directly submit their concerns to this center, bypassing intermediaries, for thorough follow-up and examination.’
The Ministry of Education further elaborated on this announcement: ‘In accordance with this report, all messages from the public submitted to the provided ID were received through the ‘Shad’ student network and promptly forwarded to the appropriate authorities for thorough investigation and swift action. It is important to note that in the upcoming days, this center will once again establish direct and effective communication utilizing new methods.’
The regime’s Ministry of Education issued this announcement as if it were oblivious to the shortage of tens of thousands of teachers throughout Iran. Now, two months into the new academic year and faced with the nation’s most significant educational crisis in recent years, it expresses an intention to investigate the reports on the scarcity of teachers.
Regime MPs and official sources had previously released statistics regarding the shortage of teachers and classrooms without instructors. Moinuddin Saeedi, the representative of Chabahar, stated that Sistan and Baluchestan is grappling with a shortage of at least 15,000 teachers.
Additionally, the Ilna news agency reported on October 15, 2023 that a deficiency of teachers in certain schools in Urmia has led to the closure of classrooms in the province. Seyyed Salman Zaker, the representative of Urmia, also declared the scarcity of teachers in 506 schools in Urmia.
In one of his recent statements on Friday, October 30, 2023, Mohammad Vahidi, a member of the Parliament’s Education Commission, revealed in an interview with Rouydad 24 that there are currently 100,000 classrooms without teachers. This revelation comes in contrast to earlier estimations by some MPs, who had projected the shortage of teachers in Iran’s schools to be as high as 300,000 individuals.
Close to 90,000 teachers were eligible for retirement, and at the start of the academic year, 68,000 teachers exited the system. This translates to 68,000 vacant classrooms without instructors. If some individuals were responsible for two classrooms each, the total count of empty classrooms would reach 100,000.
The political and security perspectives on teachers play a significantly influential role in this situation. Saeedi disclosed some time ago that the Ministry of Education’s recruitment strategy for teachers focuses on enlisting ‘specific individuals’ in this profession.
He further noted that ‘numerous individuals possessing academic qualifications unfortunately face rejection due to their views and involvement in political discussions.’
The scarcity of teachers has expedited the rate of student dropouts. In Sistan and Baluchistan, fewer than 40 out of every 100 students manage to obtain a diploma. These statistics indicate that approximately 10% of students in Sistan and Baluchestan are continuing their education, while girls are the minority.
Despite three months having elapsed since the commencement of the academic year, the unsettling statistic of a 60% dropout rate persists. Notably, there is no information on any measures taken by the regime’s education officials to address and ameliorate the situation in schools across Iran.
Despite these challenges, recent reports have surfaced regarding the presence of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) commanders in schools. The involvement of these IRGC commanders appears to be aimed at influencing and indoctrinating children and teenagers, facilitated through coordination with the Ministry of Education.
As per the report, on November 22, 2023, an IRGC official from Tehran, along with IRGC commanders from Zahedan city, visited Roqiyeh girls’ and Tohid boys’ schools in Kurin District, Zahedan.
Their objective was to promote the regime’s goals, and during their visit, they commended the regime, highlighting the province’s advancements in areas such as transportation, water, and electricity. In their addresses, they labeled individuals protesting in this region as agents of America and Israel.
